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Monday, September 10, 2012

Richard Petty Motorsports Makes Crew, Crew Chief Changes

Richard Petty
Motorsports announced today that it has made changes to its crew lineup in the
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

Mike Ford will
now lead Marcos Ambrose and the No. 9 Ford, while Todd Parrott has been
assigned as crew chief for Aric Almirola and the No. 43 Ford. In addition, team
members from both teams will also make the switch with their respective crew
chief. Several pit crew members were also changed recently in an attempt to
strengthen the entire RPM organization and improve the performance level now
and into the future.

The changes are
effective immediately.

Richard Petty Motorsports currently has one win, three poles, 10
top-10 and three top-five finishes this season in the Sprint Cup Series. The
team was also in position to make the Chase for the second consecutive season
with driver Marcos Ambrose.

"We're continuing to make improvements at Richard Petty
Motorsports and we've added talented people to our organization this
season," said Sammy Johns, director of competition. "This move is to make
sure that we are using that talent to the fullest to get the best results for
our teams each weekend. We feel this adjustment will strengthen the
organization, allow us to continue to compete for wins and ultimately challenge
for championships."

Ford and Parrott are both veteran, winning crew chiefs. Parrott
has one Sprint Cup championship, a Daytona 500 championship and 31 Sprint Cup
wins to his credit. Ford has six Chase births and 25 Sprint Cup race wins on
his resume. Both are looking at the change as an opportunity to better Richard
Petty Motorsports.

"Aric has really shown the desire and dedication to get his
first Sprint Cup Series win," Parrott said. "It was great our team
helped lead Marcos to his first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series win and poles. We are
now ready to help direct Almirola and the No. 43 team to the same results and
better."

Ford is also ready to work with Ambrose and the No. 9 race team.

"Marcos is a racer who has proven to win poles and
races," Ford said. "Our goal is to take my experiences and make sure
we can consistently run up front and continue to win races."

Ford, Parrott and their teams will be working with their new
respective drivers this weekend at Chicagoland Speedway.